A new road safety campaign will be launched in Dublin today in an effort to encourage motorists, passengers, pedestrians and cyclists to change their self-destructive ways. The trends are extremely worrying. Last year, there was a rise of 10 per cent in the number of road deaths and, so far this year, that dreadful figure has been maintained, with the number killed exceeding 160.
Many of the fatal accidents have involved drink or drugs. And in spite of regular publicity campaigns, the need for abstinence or sensible moderation where alcohol is concerned has not been accepted by a large number of road users. The public attitude towards drink driving is slowly changing. But it hasn't forced a re-evaluation of mindsets across all age groups. The only way to change ingrained habits for some motorists may be through detection and punishment.
The new chairman of the Road Safety Authority, Gay Byrne, has spoken of the possibility of reducing the number of road deaths by 150 a year. That is an ambitious, but achievable target if all sections of society pull together and if the Government finally gets around to legislating for random breath-testing. There will also have to be an intensive Garda crackdown on motoring offences involving speeding, seat belts and dangerous driving. Arrangements must be made by the Minister for Transport, Martin Cullen, to tackle the horrendous backlog for driving tests and process the 400,000 drivers who hold provisional licences in this State.
It is all very well to organise road safety events in advance of bank holiday weekends and to appeal for road users to take greater care. But, on the basis of our past unhappy experience, the impact tends to be short-lived. Unless motorists are properly trained and develop a fear of being detected and punished for breaking the law, individuals will continue to place themselves and other road users in jeopardy. That issue is gradually being addressed. The Garda computer system is now more effective in dealing with penalty points. The size of the new Garda traffic corps has been expanded. And a new speed camera system may eventually be introduced.
Progress has been excruciatingly slow. This Government behaved parsimoniously where the provision of funding was concerned. And while the issues underlying our worsening road safety record have been recognised for years, little was done. That is changing, slowly. An election tends to concentrate the minds of politicians. And if that is what it takes to provide extra funding, pass the necessary laws and make our roads safer, so be it. The incidence of road accidents can be curbed.